Sunday I flew the crap out of the Starfire, no, not a Spark, just a good training platform for guys doing a transition from prop to EDF jets.

I landed the thing a few times and the peanut gallery made comments about the long roll outs, one time a few bounces. So, I asked the club President and hot shot heli pilot if he wanted to take a shot at it. On occasion he also flies a giant Top Flite P-51. He wanted me to take the plane off, so I did, then handed him the box. He flew it fine, nothing out of the ordinary, a roll here and there, but he couldn't land it. The peanut gallery got very quiet as he did 3 or 4 missed landings than gave up and porpoised it down the runway into the dirt. He then walked away swearing about how hard it was...reputation tarnished...No damage cause the gear is fixed, it just bent.

That is how jet pilots get respect, it isn't as easy as it looks.

What someone finds out for themselves is pricelessly more valuable that anything told to them!

I hear it all the time, the field closest to me has a 12' x 250 ft runway and they dont understand why its harder for a 12lb jet to land on it than a Pitts biplane, or a Thundertiger trainer and why it takes a good portion of the runway to get airborne instead of 10' like a propjob

You guys are lucky to have a decent field to fly at at all. My club is full or "old timers" that had never even seen an edf until I flew one there when I joined a year ago. We moved to a new site a few weeks ago (which they chose too close to houses and oriented so the approach is right in line with one of the houses) and already the neighbors are complaining about my Spark. The pres told me "be sure not to fly over that house" as I was taxi'ing out over the weekend. All they do is traditional slow flying circuits and some in close 3d. Anything else is voodoo. They don't understand that you can't do flying of this kind within a couple hundred meters. Can't wait till I pull out my FPV stuff. You would think that a place as big as Charlotte NC would have a decent club/field within an hours drive.

Really getting bummed out/frustrated with not having a proper place to fly.

You guys are lucky to have a decent field to fly at at all. My club is full or "old timers" that had never even seen an edf until I flew one there when I joined a year ago. We moved to a new site a few weeks ago (which they chose too close to houses and oriented so the approach is right in line with one of the houses) and already the neighbors are complaining about my Spark. The pres told me "be sure not to fly over that house" as I was taxi'ing out over the weekend. All they do is traditional slow flying circuits and some in close 3d. Anything else is voodoo. They don't understand that you can't do flying of this kind within a couple hundred meters. Can't wait till I pull out my FPV stuff. You would think that a place as big as Charlotte NC would have a decent club/field within an hours drive.

Really getting bummed out/frustrated with not having a proper place to fly.

Yeah, a good-sized jet really needs more from a flying site than other aircraft. In my case, the runway is great but some nearby power lines have turned out to be a bit of a problem.

I tend to do long approaches with everything I fly, but especially with jets, so I need to practice getting comfortable with shorter approaches. I had one experience stalling a jet during a slow banked turn on approach, which left me sort of paranoid...

Anyone can take off and bore holes in the sky. Come land your big turbine at our field... then you become a pilot! 425' long x 25 feet wide, downhill and twisted, always in a cross wind... 50' cliff at one end and steep wall at the other... no runoff area.

Ok, so here's a question. Say you job allowed you to live anywhere in the US and your only location consideration was being near some nice flying sites. Where would you choose? What place has the most nice fields close by?

As a matter of fact, I am surprised that there isn't a forum on RCG that showcases flying sites etc.

Probably just outside of Phoenix, AZ. There is a place called "Speedworld". It is an extreme sports park. It has a race track, a drag strip, off road track, and a beautiful model airpark with a 1000' x 70' perfectly flat and paved runway... even has runoffs at each end. You can fly year round there.

What about Sara Park in Havasu? Doesn't it meet the same criteria. I saw jets fly there, I was there the day one got lost. A fellow named Scott was flying it.

I was the guy next to him, the guy he tried to help when I had a Spektrum failure, I also was the guy that was also next to him at the AZ Electric Festival in 2008. The guy with the motor home next to his. Small world, isn't it.